Stars of the Night
by EidolonLathi
Summary: Since some time Edogai occasionally meets unexpected company when visiting the graveyard at night. First not knowing what to make out of this odd situation he soon finds it to become another part of his grave robbing routine. A horror AU. [TsurumixEdogai]
1. Rawhide

_Summary: Since some time Edogai occasionally meets unexpected company when visiting the graveyard at night. First not knowing what to make out of this odd situation he soon finds it to become another part of his grave robbing routine. A horror AU. [Tsurumi/Edogai]_

Author's Notes: Chapter 179 with all its implications does not exist in the verse of this fic. This fic is also cross posted on ao3.

**Stars of the Night**

**Chapter 01 - Rawhide**

Edogai kept shovelling the earth aside, trying to ignore that his arms were beginning to feel heavier and heavier with every passing minute. The ground was still somewhat loose, it being a freshly dug grave. But that didn't change anything about the fact that it would still need more time and effort until he would have reached the coffin.

Despite the exhaustion building up in him Edogai was beginning to feel excited. It had been some time since there had been the opportunity for him to get new material. And he already had so many new ideas of what he wanted to create with it, deciding felt difficult already. Well, there would be no sense in planning ahead before he would see with what kind of raw material he was dealing with this time. If it was in good shape then maybe he would make another human mount. If it was already too damaged to do that he could use it to create a new outfit. There was an idea for a pair of new boots he was having since some time. For those he would need two skulls on top of new a skin too though.

A sudden noise took Edogai out of his thoughts. He went completely still, listening, not moving a muscle. He would get caught. One of these days he would get caught, he just could feel it. He went visiting to the graveyard too often, there was no way that in the meanwhile no one had noticed that something was amiss. And yet he couldn't stop. There mere thought of having to stop making his creations left a dull suffocating feeling spread through his chest, he couldn't bear it. No, there was no way he could stop. So the only way was to make sure no one would catch him after all.

A second sound reached Edogai's ear. A faint yip similar to those of a dog's, and then another one, answering the second noise. Edogai breathed out in relive, continuing to dig up the coffin despite still feeling slightly shaken from the sudden shock. So it had been no human searching for the unknown grave robber after all, it had only been them.

Them. Edogai still didn't know what to call them. They had started showing up some nights ago, busy to dig up their own material at the graveyard, using no shovels but only their paws for it. The first time Edogai had seen them he had been scared beyond description. He had been convinced that this had been it, that the authorities had finally started to look for the grave robber disturbing the nightly peace of this place. But a closer look had corrected this misconception. Police coming to look for him would have human heads, not oddly canine ones. Edogai's second thought then had been that maybe it had been an animal, a wild dog, a wolf, or something the like coming out of the forest. But those didn't walk on their hind legs only.

No, it had neither been human nor animal, it had just been… them. Whatever they were supposed to be exactly.

Still busy shovelling the earth aside a faint smile showed up on Edogai's face. Funny, in those first moment those odd creatures had been just as scared of Edogai as he had been of them, rotting themselves together and fleeing the place as quickly as he had.

But they had returned the following night, just as Edogai had done. For a while their pack and Edogai had eyed each other in suspicion, then both groups had tentatively approached the grave they had in mind emptying and had started to, minding their own business while doing so.

The name of those creatures might still have been unknown to him but in the meanwhile Edogai could say for sure that just like him they were driven by a strong urge sending them here even if that meant having to deal with suspicious strangers.

And anyway, in the meanwhile things had worked themselves out. The graves Edogai needed for his purposes were the most recent ones, him searching for material that was as fresh as possible. Those odd creatures in contrary apparently preferred it for their food to be in a more ripe state.

Because yes, the reason those doglike creatures emptied graves was to eat the content. Even from a distance Edogai could hear them gnaw and bite, rip apart and chew. He didn't really mind. Except for the smell. The smell could get quite bad if they had found a grave in an especially bad state of decay.

Edogai's shovel met something hard. The coffin, he had finally reached the coffin. He instinctually wrinkled up his nose. Well, that specific smell, would await him right now too. It was funny, in all those years he had practiced his taxidermy he had never gotten used to it. Had not gotten used to it at all. He had just learned to deal with it. But well, once the skin was off the worst would be done with and matters would become more civilized again.

Ah, well, not quite. Then he would still have to think of what to do with the rest of the material. Most of the time he only needed the skin and some bones but to gather those together he had no choice but to deal with the entire body. It was annoying, really.

Edogai looked up, checking the state of the gravestone nearby again. Most fresh graves didn't have one to begin with but this being a cemetery the place was naturally full with them. You had to be careful with gravestones, very careful. If one of those things fell on you, heavy as they were, well, then this graveyard soon would have another resident.

But yes, right now the surroundings of the hole were safe. Edogai took a deep breath, bracing himself about what was to come. The sooner he would get this over with the better he thought, finally opening the coffin lid.

Carrying his newly gathered raw material Edogai left the graveyard. It had been too dark to see in what state it had been in exactly, he would know more as soon as he had reached his home again. The only thing he could say for sure now was that the material probably would be unfitting for another mount. For that it already smelled too strong. Smelled. The thing was reeking.

In a corner of his vision Edogai could see movement. He snapped his head around. But once again the alarm had been false, it had just been those doglike creatures again. They were staring after him leaving, halting whatever it was they were doing, some of them even hiding behind gravestones. Some brave ones though were tentatively making some steps forward, eying him with curiosity.

Once he had left the surroundings of the cemetery Edogai was alone again. At least he had thought so. The faint yipping sounds reaching his ear from time to time made it obvious who was following him. Edogai could feel his patience leave. Getting access to the raw material had been exhausting and now he still had to get the thing home. A quite heavy thing that was reeking of death.

Edogai turned around: "What do you want?"

Though he couldn't see the creatures he could practically feel them freezing up with tension. Now no yipping whatsoever could be heard. Then hesitant movements could be heard again and the next moment three of those odd doglike creatures shuffled out of the bushes.

Exhaustion finally winning Edogai laid down the raw material on the ground. The shovel he kept in his hand, leaning its handle on his shoulder. "Well? I'm listening."

The three creatures gave each other a silent look, then the one standing in the middle stepped slightly forwards. "My name is Zend. That one here is Nil and this is Grond. We come carrying a request of the pack."

"So the lots of you can talk after all", Edogai said, unable to keep the surprise and well, offence out of his voice. So that weird yipping communication, they had only done that to mislead him?

The creature... no, what had its name been, Zend? Zend clarified: "Most of us can't or only speak a little. Learning human language is hard. I can speak it best so that's why I was send."

Edogai felt himself calming down again. "I see." He let his gaze wander in the distance, checking if they were still alone. He had raw material with him right now, he wanted to return home as soon as possible. "So, you said something about a request?"

Zend pointed at the raw material. "It has to do with that. You only need some parts of it and throw away most of the parts one can eat, is this right?"

So were they trying to claim the body he just had dug up or something? Edogai felt reluctance rise up in him. "I need this here as raw material. I just dug it up myself."

"Raw material?"

"Skin and some bones mostly. I need those things, I absolutely cannot give them away."

The creatures gave each other another silent look and then Zend continued talking: "But you don't really need the meat?"

Edogai sighed. Flesh and organs were the parts always ending up as a leftover, difficult to dispose of. And he needed them to be disposed in a safe manner. Cutting them up and mixing them into the animal waste was a way to deal with them but that was lots of effort. "I don't. So, you still haven't told me about that request of yours."

Zend fidgeted around before he finally started talking: "We wanted to ask you if you could give us the parts you don't need."

"Huh?"

"You see, finding food is difficult for us at the moment. Most of our old hunting grounds are now full with reros. So going there is dangerous now. One of the few places we can still eat at the moment is here."

"So you're in some sort of food crisis?"

"Not enough food, yes. You keep carrying away what would be good food in the future so we're becoming worried."

Edogai straightened his back, feeling his annoyance return: "I dug this up! I'm sorry, but if you need it yourself you should have been faster! It's mine now."

The creatures covered in surprise by this sudden outburst. "We don't want to stop you digging up your prey. We're just asking if you could give us what you throw away anyway. We tried searching for those remains by ourselves but you dispose with care."

"Of course I dispose it carefully." It wouldn't do if anyone realized what kind of waste Edogai mixed in the one coming from animals. But well, if those creatures wanted to have it that actually would erase a great burden of him. "But coming back to your request: Yes, you can have the leftovers, I don't mind."

"Honestly?", Zend said, sounding glad. He turned around towards his two companions, yipping.

"Yes, of course honestly." Edogai picked up the raw material. "Let's go on then, I don't feel comfortable staying here too long."

"Ah, we do not like this either", Zend said, shaking his head.

When they had finally reached his house Edogai's arms were aching. Today's raw material was especially heavy, honestly. He opened the front door: "Well, come on in then."

The creatures hesitated. "Is it really alright for us to enter your den?", Zend asked.

"House. This is a house. And yes, come in already, I don't want the neighbours to notice you." The few neighbours Edogai had all lived quite some distance away but it wouldn't do if any of them started to notice his nightly trips.

The creatures silently followed the invitation, entering the house. Edogai felt relieved. That was the last thing he would have needed, suspicious doglike things lingering in front of his house, drawing unnecessary attention.

Edogai closed the door and called for his cat: "Kabuto, I'm home!"

"Mew!"

Edogai laid down the heavy raw material, turning on the lights and greeting his cat. Behind him he could hear shy yipping. He turned around, giving the doglike creatures a questioning stare.

Zend gestured at the numerous animal mounts in the room. "You, um, did hunt all of this?"

Edogai needed a moment to comprehend the question. Once he did he started laughing, he couldn't help it. "Oh, no, no, I didn't hunt any of them. The people who did just give me the dead animals and then I make the mounts."

"Mounts? Do you make it so the bodies won't rot?", Zend asked, he and his two friends still unable to stop staring at the animal mounts. The concept of taxidermy obviously was an unfamiliar one to them.

"Just the skins. I tan the skins and then arrange them over a frame, trying to recreate the animal in question as lifelike as possible", Edogai explained.

"Ah. I see", Zend said, unable to tear his gaze away from the mount of an oryx antelope.

Now that they were inside, surrounded by light Edogai could give the odd creatures a good look for the first time. Dogs, they were definitely resembling dogs. But not entirely. They also carried traits of certain monkeys, their ability to walk on their hind legs the most obvious one. In his activity as a taxidermist Edogai had worked on countless different animals, local ones and the most exotic ones you could imagine. Something like those creatures though, something like this he had never seen before. Their entire body was covered by thin fur showing a sickly grey colour. And their heads definitely resembled some canine's but their forepaws on the other side looked monkey like, more hands than paws.

Edogai felt his curious collector ambition rise up in a far corner of his mind. Performing taxidermy on one of those creatures must be a challenge, maybe not unlike trying to let a human appear lifelike. Because despite looking repulsive their faces were quite expressive.

Edogai's ponderings were interrupted by the voice of his mother: "I can't believe it! What kind of filth have you brought into the house, Yasaku?!"

"They're my guests mother! I'm allowed to bring guests!"

"Guests! All I can see is filth trying to interrupt our peaceful life. What were you thinking?"

"Be quiet mother!"

Edogai picked up the raw material. "Let's go to the basement. Once I have the skin and what else I need you can have the rest."

Zend intently looked at Edogai: "Uh, yes, alright."

Once they were in the basement Edogai wasted no time. The night had been long and he wanted to get done with this. Starting to skin the body he continued talking: "But Mister Zend... Zend, wasn't it?"

"Ah, yes, I'm Zend and those are Nil and Grond."

"Mister Nil and Mister Grond, wonderful. You can call me Edogai by the way. So, listen Mister Zend: When the three of you leave make absolutely sure no one can see you, understood?"

Zend started looking uncomfortable. "Yes. You don't have to tell us, we don't want anyone to see us either. Our kind prefers to stay hidden."

Trying to block out the smell Edogai tried breathing through the mouth only now. But that never quite worked the way intended. He surely would be glad once the skin was off and he would be done with this. "And Mister Zend? Also make sure to not accidentally drop something. No one must notice the lots of you were here."

"We're leaving with food. Nothing will be dropped."

"Wonderful."

Zend cleared his throat. "Um, we don't want to impose on you. Maybe we should wait outside after all?"

Edogai huffed. "Outside? Where the neighbours could spot you? Absolutely not. Don't worry, you don't bother me. And I'm done with this here soon anyway."

"Ah, ah, that's good then."

"And don't worry about food getting wasted. The next time I go to collect raw material you can have the leftovers again if you want."

"That's very kind of you. We appreciate that."

Zend had spoken the truth, once he and his friends were ready to leave they did so quietly. Even with the burden they were now carrying with them they sneaked into the night without making a sound, keeping their promise.

Edogai sighed. All he wanted to do was going to sleep but he still needed to clean up the basement. No matter how careful he was, getting material from the cemetery would always leave it dirty.

He had barely started when his mother started talking again: "Inviting dirty filth like this into our lovely house, I can't believe it. You just did it to upset your poor mother, didn't you, Yasaku?"

"Stop talking like this! Mister Zend and his friends were my guests, not filth."

"Guests he says! You always had the habit to pick the most terrible of so called friends. 'Animal' would have been the better description for that that scum. But then, I shouldn't be surprised, you brought that filthy cat into our house too."

Edogai felt an old anger rise up inside of him, heavy and sharp. "Kabuto isn't filthy either. He's my cat and he stays."

"Is that the tone you chose talking to your own mother? Animals are dirty beings and are not suited to live in a house."

"Kabuto stays", Edogai simply said, cleaning up the last traces of dirt from his worktable.

His mother huffed. "You've always been a difficult child, Yasaku. Very difficult."

O O O

From this night on the times Edogai went down towards the graveyard had gotten a new routine. The pack of doglike creatures would still avoid him and eye him with suspicion, keeping their distance. But once he started digging for a coffin Zend and his two friends would appear soon, getting ready for the trip to Edogai's house that would give them the much needed food.

Just like they were waiting for Edogai to dig up his coffin right now.

"Isn't it difficult, having to rely on a food source this hard to find?", Edogai asked, shovelling the earth aside.

Zend shrugged his shoulders. "That's how it has always been for us. Currently we're digging new tunnels towards safer areas that are more promising but that takes time."

"Tunnels?"

"We have a whole lot of them. It helps us so no human can see us moving around", Zend explained.

"I see." Edogai wanted to say more but got interrupted. By a howl, sudden and full of agony. Then a few hectic yips could be heard.

Zend perked up his huge pointed ears and then looked at Edogai. "Someone got caught under a gravestone", he translated before rushing together with his two friends towards the noise. Edogai followed, his shovel still in hand.

Truly, an accident had occurred. A gravestone had fallen on a young one, the only reason it was not crushing the creature yet being that the unlucky victim was covering in a small cavity. But the gravestone wasn't standing stable, it was clear it would topple over fully soon, threatening to crush the creature trapped by it entirely.

Other members or the pack tried moving the gravestone but hadn't much success, the thing was just too heavy. Seeing the depression of the cavity Edogai got an idea. He stuck his shovel in the small space between trapped victim and stone, using his shovel to level the gravestone up. It wasn't much but combined with the help of the other creatures it was enough so they eventually managed to free the unfortunate young one who had nearly gotten crushed. Half by crawling out, half by being lifted out it managed to escape.

Edogai already wanted to return to the hole he was still busy digging when the unlucky creature addressed him with a series of yips.

Not knowing what to make from the situation Edogai looked with questioning eyes first towards the unlucky one and then at Zend.

"He wants to thank you for helping him", Zend translated.

Hearing this Edogai felt a gloom spread through his chest. He didn't know why. "Not at all. I'm glad I could help", he said, returning to digging up his raw material.

From this night on the strange doglike creatures stopped avoiding Edogai. Both parties were still minding their own business when being at the graveyard at night but the atmosphere of suspicion that had existed between them had vanished completely. Edogai did not complain.


	2. Blood Patrol

**Chapter 02 - Blood Patrol**

Edogai picked up the skin sample in frustration, eying it with suspicion. The ink, the ink just wasn't looking right. The tattoo looked all wrong, it was that simple. You could see at first glance that the imitation was nothing like the original.

"Why are you looking so unhappy?"

Hearing those words Edogai twitched together in shock. Getting over the first surprise of the moment the turned around, smiling at Tsurumi. "The ink's still not looking right", Edogai said, managing to let his voice sound even. Now he was already beginning to feel downright silly for having gotten surprised like this. But then, he wasn't used to other people being in the house. Actual people that were alive instead of human mounts he projected personalities and voices on. Thanks to Tsurumi those imaginary voices had finally stopped. But at the same time Edogai still hadn't gotten used to the change, to hearing voices in his house that were caused by real humans talking instead of his mind going a little bit too far with its imagination.

Compared to imaginary humans real ones were so unpredictable. Edogai was still trying to get used to this.

Though Edogai voiced none of this he got the impression Tsurumi had figured out his thoughts anyway. His expression got serious, shortly looking at the samples of human skin lying on the table before looking at Edogai again. "You just started. You will figure out a solution in time." His voice had sounded certain, as if he had absolutely no doubt Edogai would eventually manage the task given.

Hearing this Edogai didn't know what to say. Less because he was actually doubting his own skills but more because he wasn't used to people encouraging him. It didn't happen. Not since his father had been dead. Edogai tried finding an answer: "I guess. I'll try."

"I know you will", Tsurumi said, an affectionate gleam showing up behind his eyes. Before Edogai had figured out what was happening Tsurumi had already tangled the fingers of his hand into Edogai's hair, brushing through it gently.

Edogai went completely still. First out of surprise and then because the feeling was so addictively nice. Tsurumi continued to slowly comb his fingers through strands of Edogai's hair, careful not to pull to hard but to keep the movement soft.

The memory was so vivid for a moment Edogai wasn't entirely sure where he was or what was actually happening. He blinked in confusion, slowly getting aware that what he was seeing right now was a gloomy twilight showing nothing but rocks and boulders instead of Tsurumi's face looking at him with affection.

For a moment Edogai felt dizzy, unable to breath properly anymore. It was desperation setting in now that he was fully realizing the extent of the situation he was in.

He didn't want to realize in what kind of situation he was in. He just couldn't, it was too much. The memory that had just overwhelmed him was still near in his mind, if he closed his eyes he could recall it again.

Noticing it kept the worst of his building up desperation at bay Edogai clung to the memory, trying to forget about anything else. About the darkness. About the pain in his legs getting noticeable now that the adrenaline was slowly leaving his body and making room for exhaustion.

No, it was much better to get lost in the memory of Tsurumi petting Edogai's hair for the first time. It was odd, though back then Edogai had been so surprised during that moment it hadn't felt embarrassed getting touched like that. In a strange way it had felt completely natural, just as dancing with Tsurumi on the day they had met for the first time had felt natural. Like something that was supposed to be, warm and sweet following a logic that was as incomprehensible as clear.

And that though sweet things didn't happen to Edogai. No, since he could remember he always had been busy keeping the worst of the bitter darkness surrounding him at bay. He could count on one hand the things that had been nothing but pleasant in his entire live: Number one was Tsurumi, obviously. Number two was his cat, maybe the only living thing that had liked being in his presence since his father had died. Right, number three was his father. Things had been bearable as long as he still had been alive. Ignoring the bitter fog weighing down his lungs Edogai thought of thing number four: His taxidermy. He had always loved doing it and had even become good enough at it that the world around him had no choice left but to acknowledge the work of quality he was producing.

Four things that had managed to bring Edogai joy in his live. Was that everything? One finger on his hand was still left, there would be room for more but at first Edogai couldn't recall anything that had stood out in this devastating sea of pain strong enough to chase the bitterness away. But then he got a shy idea: Why not count Zend and his pack as well? Sure, their first meetings had been tense ones. But in the meanwhile they had gotten to know each other much better and that had chased all those insecurities away, leaving every time they interacted on the graveyard and in Edogai's house as a pleasant experience. Yes, Edogai decided that Zend was allowed to count as number five.

Now that he thought about it: Since he had met Tsurumi Edogai hadn't seen the odd doglike creatures again, not even once. Not Zend nor one of the others. But then, since he had met Tsurumi Edogai hadn't gone down to the graveyard again; there simply had been neither reason nor need for it.

It was a bit of a pity. Edogai would have liked to introduce Tsurumi to Zend and the others. After all they had become his... well, maybe not friends but good acquaintances. The best he had at the moment.

Sometimes Edogai had considered just telling Tsurumi about those strange creatures he had met during his trips to the cemetery but in the end never had done so. In the light of the day thinking about those creatures felt strange enough already but going even farther by talking about them? Edogai didn't think Tsurumi would have believed him. And honestly, he couldn't blame him.

No, it would have been better if they just could have met, that would have made any description unnecessary.

Yes, those honestly had been Edogai's thoughts not long ago. Lying in the dark mine, feeling like the wooden bars were crushing his legs, trapping him in place he had to admit to himself that those wishes wouldn't amount to anything. Just like his other wishes wouldn't amount to anything: Tsurumi wouldn't pet Edogai's hair one last time. They wouldn't even see each other for a last time.

Trying to clear his head from the dizzy fog he rubbed his hands against his face, one of the few movements he was still able to make in his situation. His hands suddenly felt wet? Why were his hands wet? Oh, so he had started crying after all, that was why.

The memory of Tsukishima leaving flared up before Edogai's inner eye. Instead of feeling lonely he tried to see the positive in the situation: At least like this his work hadn't been in vain. Tsukishima was reliable, he would make sure Tsurumi would get the fake tattooed skins. He would deliver them and Edogai's work would not be in vain like this. His life had not ended up being in vain thanks to that. A life as pointless as his and he had somehow ended up being useful to someone he loved. There was no need to cry at all.

Edogai felt a pain in his chest, a feeling as if he was breaking apart, starting at his heart. He wanted to see Tsurumi, now! But there had been no option but to let Tsukishima go. Trapped as he was under the wooden balks it would have taken an eternity for Tsukishima to get him out. In that time he would have gotten trapped by death himself before he had managed to get the both of them out. No, letting Tsukishima go had been the sensible thing to do, Edogai knew that. He felt another aching stab in his chest. He hated being sensible, he really hated it.

The foggy cloud in his mind must have been much worse than Edogai had thought. In the meanwhile he was hearing voices. Weak voices. And yips, faint and hollow.

Yips! Edogai's eyes widened in the realization, staring into the almost darkness trapping him. "Mister Zend? Is that you?", he shouted as loud as he could.

No answer. Instead it had gotten completely quiet. Edogai didn't know what was worse, the gloomy twilight or the silence. In his current state of being everything felt so unreal, even his legs beginning to ache with a merciless pain were beginning to feel disconnected from him.

Now that he was thinking about it: Had there ever been a creature called Zend? It was not like Edogai had any proof. And more, Zend and his friends had stopped showing up at the same time Tsurumi had made the voice of Edogai's mother stop. Couldn't it be that Zend had been a creation of his mind as well? Maybe. Yes, maybe Edogai simply had been a little bit more messed up in the head than he had assumed all this time. If you hallucinated stuffed people talking to you what was stopping your mind to hallucinate odd doglike creatures as well? Nothing, nothing at all.

But at least Tsurumi had been real and not another creation of Edogai's imagination to keep his soul crushing loneliness at bay, right? Edogai knew that he sometimes heard and saw things that weren't actually there but figuring out what was real and what imagination could be difficult at times. But Edogai was almost certain that at least Tsurumi had been real despite being far too good to be true.

There was a whisper and then a shape appeared in front of Edogai's eyes, taking him out of his desperate thoughts. "Mister Edogai, so it has really been you after all! Good thing we followed your scent." It was Zend. He turned around and started making those weird yips, the language of his kind.

In the almost darkness Edogai could see more shadows appearing. It seemed to be the entire pack. "What are you all doing here?" Seeing the those creatures turn up in a situation like this felt odd, as if Edogai had gotten trapped in a nightmare.

"We came running here when we felt the explosion. Accidents like this always mean a lot of dead bodies stay around in places no one bothers to come looking for them." Zend explained and started crawling around Edogai, getting a better look at the situation. "But now is not the time to talk. The fire keeps spreading through the mine. We need to get you out of here, fast."

"It's no use Mister Zend. My legs got trapped under the heavy boulders. There's no way I can move."

"You underestimate us. The entire pack is here right now. Together we're strong. And we're good at digging holes in case you hadn't noticed", Zend said, tone almost playful despite the dire situation.

Edogai laughed, shortly and nervously. "I noticed, believe me."

And they managed. Edogai didn't know how but before he had realized what was going on exactly they had managed to get him away from the boulders and were pulling him out from under the rubble. And then his thoughts stopped entirely because his legs started hurting, painfully, mercilessly and it just wouldn't stop. Edogai couldn't help but wince in pain.

Zend who was one of the creatures carrying him let hear a sympathetic yip. "The worst is over. Now we can get you out of here. Right over there is one of our tunnels that will quickly lead us out of here to a place over ground and right into town."

The face of the man who had hunted him and Tsukishima into the mine in the first place appeared in Edogai's mind. That man had also shot Mister Maeyama. Edogai let hear a groan that had nothing to do with the ache in his legs. Mister Maeyama was dead, shot just like that by this terrible person. "Mister Zend? There is someone who tried hunting me down. Maybe there are even more than just him. I don't know if appearing outside of the mine is a good idea."

In the meanwhile they had reached the tunnel. Some of the pack members were carrying torches, chasing the complete darkness of the place away. The light was enough to show the thoughtful look appearing on Zend's doglike features. "I see. Listen, we have tunnel systems spanning around the place that go quite far. What place would be best for you now?"

"Being with Mister Tsurumi and everyone else... but they're all in Otaru, it's no good."

"Otaru? We have a tunnel leading to Otaru." Zend looked at Edogai, expression sincere.

"Isn't that too far?", Edogai asked, unable to keep the disbelieve out of his voice. A tunnel leading to Otaru? Seriously, what were those creatures?

When Zend started talking he sounded content. "It isn't far at all. At times we have to travel distances even much bigger."

"But Mister Zend, I can't walk."

"We're here with the entire pack, we can take turns carrying you. Like this we will be even faster than those horses you humans prefer to travel with, you'll see."

"I guess I'll see, yes", Edogai sighed. Now that the rush and panic from the events leading him here were fading it was impossible to ignore the pain in his legs any longer. The pain, the nightmarish journey in the underground tunnel while getting carried by those odd doglike creatures, it was all too weird. At some point Edogai felt his mind slip into a detached, dreamlike state. There were a few occasions he was sure he had heard Maeyama's voice talking to him but it must have been his imagination after all.


	3. Stars of the Night

**Chapter 03 - Stars of the Night**

Tsurumi still wasn't entirely sure what had happened during the last hour. (It had been a bit over an hour, he had just checked the time. Funny, it had felt like ten minutes only.) Trying to hide how much he was feeling at loss he tried to find words of comfort for Tsukishima: "You had to make a decision fast and knowing what you did at the time you did the right thing."

Tsukishima showed a self-deprecating smile. "But knowing what we do now I did the wrong choice. I was wrong." Unable to hold Tsurumi's gaze any longer he turned his head to the side, looking at the figure lying in the hospital bed.

"I did not say that", Tsurumi simply stated, deciding that the best thing for the moment was to let Tsukishima be; the state of guilt he was in right now was the kind that would only get worse by additional words. The truth was sometimes silence was the better option.

Besides, the one to blame in this case was not Tsukishima but Tsurumi, obviously. If he had sent more people than just two to Yubari to ensure Edogai's safety the enemy wouldn't have found it that easy to overpower them all. No, more: If Tsurumi had brought Edogai with him to Otaru instead of letting him stay in Yubari the enemy would have found it near impossible to make a move. Tsurumi had been far too careless in the entire matter. A heavy feeling was spreading through his lungs while he was looking at Edogai who was lying in the hospital bed, unconscious from the high amount of painkillers the doctors had given him. Despite of this the pain he was still feeling even in this drugged up state was obvious on his features anyway.

If Edogai was lucky he might end up keeping both of his legs, the doctors had said that. Though as far as Tsurumi was concerned the biggest miracle was that Edogai was still alive. He still hadn't quite grasped that. Tsukishima's report had been so cruel in its clarity. Sometimes people died, it happened. Tsurumi had witnessed it often enough. The fact that you cared deeply about the lost person in question did not change anything about this solid reality. Death was absolute. Getting someone whose fate had been sealed miraculously back did not happen.

There was absolutely nothing Tsurumi had done to deserve this recent turn of events. But then, Edogai did, very much so. And that really was the only thing that mattered.

A twitchy restlessness was overtaking Tsurumi's mind. He would have liked to hold Edogai's hand, just to fell his warmth, just to feel the proof Tsurumi's grief and guilt of the past few hours had not hijacked his mind and set him under a vivid delusion. Grief was a strong force after all, Nikaidou being under the impression that by talking with his severed ear he could reach his deceased twin brother was living proof of that. Yes, maybe Tsurumi was in the process of becoming a bit like Nikaidou. Affirming the reality in front of him by taking Edogai's hand would have been best but with Tsukishima sitting right next to him he couldn't bring himself to do that.

"I still have no idea who could have brought him here", Tsukishima said, voicing out the one question that had been on Tsurumi's mind this entire time.

Who indeed. Who could have brought Edogai the entire distance from Yubari just to practically deliver him on Tsurumi's doorstep? The entire matter wasn't quite over yet, he could feel it. And his unrest was becoming impossible to ignore. Voicing an excuse he left the room, ordering Tsukishima to stay.

Tsukishima just nodded, not looking in the slightest like he was surprised. It was odd, there were times these days Tsurumi got the impression Tsukishima had figured out the next course of actions Tsurumi would take before he had realized them himself.

Following a faint instinct he couldn't quite put into words Tsurumi left the hospital through a side door, stepping out into the hospital garden. If something would take place it would be in the garden, he could feel it. Maybe it was the empty part of his head getting stronger these days leading him to make those impulsive decisions he couldn't quite explain, he did not know.

Having reached the fountain standing in the middle of the garden he halted his steps, listening to the wind rustling through the fresh leaves of the shrubberies and small trees around him. Above him hung the night sky, high and dark.

And then Tsurumi could smell something was amiss, the same faint scent of death and decay hanging in the air that had clung to Edogai when they had found him. Tsurumi turned his head towards the shrubberies the scent was coming from. "It isn't very polite to hide in the shadows", Tsurumi said.

For a moment there was no answer. Then a hesitant shuffle could be heard and before he had quite understood what was happening they were already standing in front of him, the light coming from the hospital windows enough to let him have a clear look on those three figures.

It was the first time Tsurumi was seeing those odd doglike creatures from up this close. He had seen them before, many times, far in the distance on battlefields. They tended to come out in the quiet times during the twilight and darkness, in the moments battle had stopped for a while and the world tended to look most like a nightmare, dreamed to life by a feverish mind. When the silence made you realize who it had been that had been wounded, who it had been who had died.

The wounded ones could get treatment. Sometimes you wouldn't reach a doctor in time. Sometimes even the doctors could do nothing to help anymore. But with the wounded ones you at least could try.

With the dead ones there was nothing to try anymore, no possibility to make it better. The only question left was what to do with their earthly remains. Sometimes there was something left to send to their families back home. Sometimes you could not even find as much as a finger of someone who had been lost. Sometimes the doglike ones erased all of those questions by carrying away the scraps they could find on the battlefield, towards their tunnels, to feed on their ghastly meal.

There was nothing to be done about that. Retrieving the remains of your comrades could be downright impossible at times, the danger that by doing so enemy fire would cease you to be among the living as well. No, there were times a human couldn't gather together those remains. The living had priority over the dead, always.

The doglike ones though always seemed to find a way to gather together the most impossible parts, relying on tunnels so advanced the trenches dug up by human hand must look like primitive attempts in comparison.

Tsurumi couldn't lie, it had always repulsed him witnessing those creatures carrying away the remains of the fallen. At times even saddened and angered him. But he couldn't hate them for it. The truth was, those corpse pieces laying around for a longer time increased the danger for the living, a magnet for disease and infection. And lowering the moral of everyone by rotting away, the reeking air of death impossible to ignore. And the living had priority over the dead, always.

No, Tsurumi couldn't hate those beings for what they were doing. The truth was yes, scavengers were not popular. But nature had also invented them for a good reason.

And now three of those doglike creatures were standing in front of him. They gave each other a hesitant look and then the one in the middle started talking. "We're not here to cause any trouble. We just wanted to know how Edogai is doing."

Hearing those words Tsurumi didn't feel surprised exactly but he felt a shiver running down his spine anyway. He didn't show it, continuing to talk in a detached voice: "Am I right to assume it was the lot of you who brought him all the way here from the mine?"

The creature in the middle looked intimidated but held Tsurumi's gaze. "Ah, yes, that was us."

"I see. Coming back to your question: His legs are badly hurt but he will definitely get better again."

Hearing this all three of the creatures looked relieved. "Oh, I'm so glad", the one in the middle said, sounding like a burden had been lifted from him.

The entire encounter still felt odd though. It was carrying the same nightmarish atmosphere those silent hours on the battlefield had, a tense silence that was just there to let you know the next patch of hell was waiting for you at a near point in the future. Tsurumi continued: "Don't misunderstand, I'm thankful for what you did. But still: What is the reason you went through all this trouble of helping Edogai?"

The creature in the middle lowered its gaze, searching for words. But when it started talking it sounded sincere: "The ones we can call friends always have been low in numbers for us ghouls. It is our habit to stay loyal to them."

"I understand."

"Yes. Well, I think it is time for us to say goodbye then."

Something about the wording seemed odd. "You have no plans of coming back", Tsurumi said. It hadn't been a question.

The creature... the ghoul in the middle explained: "Our new tunnels leading us to places more promising have been finished. The entire pack is about to move. Most likely we won't return to this area for a very long time."

With this the three of them turned around, ready to leave.

"Ah, wait. There's one last thing."

The ghouls turned around, looking at Tsurumi with questioning eyes.

"Thank you for helping Edogai."

The ghoul in the middle avoided Tsurumi's gaze. "Not at all. We are happy we could help."

With this the three of them vanished into the shadows, as quietly as they had arrived. All that was left right now in the hospital garden was the high night sky and an air so crisp and fresh it almost seemed unreal.

Returning to the hospital room Edogai was in felt like awakening from a weird dream. In here the light was bright. Tsukishima was still here, his presence reliable and stable as ever. And for reasons Tsurumi still couldn't entirely grasp Edogai was here too, still caught in the detached haze morphine had given him to spare him from the worst of his pain. But he was here and that was all that was important.

Tsurumi sat down on the chair standing next to Tsukishima's: "It was a long day for you, you should rest for a while for real now. You can leave."

Tsukishima nodded, looking reluctant and relieved at the same time. Giving Edogai one last look he stood up, his movements drenched in an exhaustion that no longer could be hidden.

And then Tsurumi finally was alone with Edogai. Unable to resist the urge any longer he took Edogai's hand, holding it in a firm grasp. It was warm, maybe a bit too much so, carrying the warmth of the small fever that had taken Edogai in its clutches. Maybe they had to remove the left leg after all, time would tell. The right one could probably be healed fully again. Probably. The prognosis of the doctors had sounded hesitant.

Tsurumi couldn't say how much time had passed until Edogai cracked his eyes open, looking into the world with an unfocused gaze. Taking into account the amount of morphine the doctors had given him maybe he wasn't even fully aware of what he was seeing right now. Or given the fact that his hand squeezed back Tsurumi's maybe he was. "Mister Tsurumi, is that really you?"

Well, that had answered the question, at least partially. "Yes, I'm here."

The look in Edogai's eyes got more focused. The gleam behind them stayed hazy though. "So it wasn't a weird dream then. I really didn't die."

Unable to keep his other hand still for any longer Tsurumi started brushing his fingers through Edogai's hair. It felt soft and silky, as always.

Tears started streaming down Edogai's face, desperate and sudden. "No, wait, this is my imagination after all, isn't it? It has to be."

Tsurumi stopped the restless movements of his hand, tangling his fingers into Edogai's hair instead. "You're set in reality right now, I assure you."

"But my head feels dizzy."

"That's because the doctors gave you something against the pain. Something strong."

Hearing this Edogai's expression went thoughtful. He still was silently crying though. The sight shot a stabbing pain through Tsurumi's lungs. "Right. When they had a look at my legs", Edogai finally said.

"You still can remember, see?"

"Right." Edogai took a shaky breath. "My legs still hurt though."

"We'll find a solution for that too", Tsurumi said, not bothering to keep the compassion out of his voice. There was barely a moment he needed to hide what he was feeling in front of Edogai, it was odd, really. Gently he continued petting Edogai's hair.

Edogai gradually calmed down, first tears getting fewer in number and then stopping entirely. He didn't say anything, just clutching at Tsurumi's hand with a shaky grip, seemingly unwilling to let go of it. Eventually his gaze wandered towards the nearby window, looking up at the night sky visible through it. Tsurumi turned his head, following Edogai's line of sight. What he saw took him by surprise: "You can see the moon from here."

"It's almost full again. And I can see some stars too", Edogai said, voice strangely thoughtful. His grip on Tsurumi's hand got stronger, holding it now with both of his hands. Edogai continued in that same thoughtful voice, speech slightly slurred from the morphine in his system and the visible exhaustion this day had brought upon him: "You know, at those times I went to the graveyard I had never had the chance to look up, only down."

Tsurumi turned away from the window, looking at Edogai with questioning eyes.

"Digging up holes isn't as easy as it might sound. Not on a graveyard. So I had to carefully look at the ground at all times, making sure everything was going well."

"I see."

"The only times I looked up was when checking no gravestone had gotten loose and was about to fall on me. And when I was carrying my raw material home, well, I had to watch the ground I was walking on. What the night sky was looking like with its stars and everything, I had no idea. The only thing I noticed about it was when the moon was especially bright or dark during a night, you see", Edogai said, the melancholia in his voice impossible to miss.

Tsurumi felt a heavy fog spread through his chest, making it hard to breathe. "From now on you can look at the night sky as often as you want to."

"That would be nice", Edogai sighed. For a while he went silent again, looking lost in thought. When he continued talking he looked away from the window, at a point far beyond the wall: "Mister Tsurumi? I make sure I'm going to recover fast. So I can start working on the skins again."

Tsurumi needed a moment to let sink in what he had just heard. Then he felt like a part of his mind was going numb, the lost part of his brain insisting on strengthening its influence. "Forget about the skins! Who was talking about the skins? The only thing that matters right now is that you get well again."

Edogai looked puzzled, the influence the morphine still had on him only intensifying his expression.

"You're more important to me than any skins", Tsurumi said because apparently he needed to voice out loud the most obvious things.

The next words Edogai uttered felt like a punch into Tsurumi's guts: "But... why?"

Because I love you. "Because the living matter more than the dead ones. And you're the most important person alive to me so that's why."

For a moment Edogai looked utterly perplexed. Then from one second to another he started crying again, this time messily and obviously upset.

Tsurumi tried finding the right words to calm him down again but couldn't think of any. It was his fault. Again. What had he been thinking listening to the impulse coming from the empty part of his head in a time like this? Edogai was still drugged up towards the border of oblivion, Tsurumi shouldn't have started any complicated discussion with him in the first place.

Despite his sobbing Edogai somehow found the strength to articulate some comprehensible words: "You're my most important person too... I'm so happy... you have no idea... I'm so happy."

There was it again, that weird ache in Tsurumi's lungs. He had a hunch he should know what this feeling was called but at the moment he just couldn't figure it out. "I'm happy to have you with me too", Tsurumi said, feeling as if the empty part of his head was acting on its own today a lot. But maybe that was not always a bad thing. He felt like giving Edogai a hug but bruised as he was from getting trapped in the mine that wasn't exactly a sensible thing to do at the moment. So instead Tsurumi started brushing his hand through Edogai's hair again. Edogai was still crying, but the gesture seemed to calm him down, his sobs gradually getting less upset and finally stopping for good.


	4. Destiny

**Chapter 04 - Destiny**

Edogai slouched down in his wheelchair, not even trying to hide he was pouting. "You're having an advantage from now on Nikaidou, that's unfair."

Nikaidou came to a halt, the movement so sudden he needed to fasten the hold of his hand on Tsukishima's arm. He still needed to rely on Tsukishima, using him as a human crutch when walking with his new prosthetic leg but the thing was: Nikaidou was walking again. He gave Edogai a smug smile that chased away most of the deep set melancholia that never truly left his eyes these days. "Debatable. Once you're fit to get your own prosthetic leg I can already tell you what will work best when getting used to it."

"Okay, that's true. Still unfair though", Edogai huffed though of course he and Nikaidou both knew that Nikaidou was right. But that was not the point. This little competing routine that had developed between them made it easier to not get crushed by the gravity of what had happened to them.

Funny what coincidences life sometimes produced. Nikaidou had lost his leg in Yubari when trying to get hold of whoever it had been who had tried to steal the skins and only a day after this incident the doctors had come to the conclusion Edogai's left leg had been hurt so badly that it needed to be removed after all. So they had amputated it. At least his right leg could stay. It was badly broken and would still need some time to heal but at least Edogai would be able to use it again. He felt like he should feel lucky about that or something but couldn't quite bring himself to. The truth was: Having lost his other leg sucked. It really, really sucked. The prospect of eventually getting used to a prosthetic one didn't change anything about that.

He leaned his chin on his hand, looking after Nikaidou who was still in the process of getting used to walking with his new leg. Going towards the fountain and back, still needing to rely on Tsukishima when walking but steps looking more and more secure the more he practiced.

It was surprisingly hot today, even in the places of the hospital garden that were lying in the shadow. A breeze rustled through the leaves of the trees, the sudden gush bringing some cooler air with it.

Way down at the fountain Tsukishima and Nikaidou had come to a halt. They were squabbling about something but Edogai couldn't understand their words. Then Nikaidou stopped clutching Tsukishima's arm, only holding his hands while trying to take a few steps like this. The whole thing looked a bit wobbly but Nikaidou succeeded. Witnessing this Edogai felt a warm fog spread through his chest. True, Nikaidou had an advantage over him now but that was a not a bad thing actually.

Edogai's left eye fell shut. The unplanned movement made him realize how bright it was here on the outside. Wind. Summer heat. Sunlight. Edogai took a deep breath but prevented it from turning into a sigh. Yes, losing his leg had sucked but he was suddenly so deeply baffled about still being alive. Baffled and glad. Down in the mine he had been absolutely certain that things had come to an end and yet here he still was. It was all thanks to Zend and his pack.

"So Nikaidou can almost walk on his own again?"

Edogai twitched together in surprise. He turned around, unsurprised to see Tsurumi. "Don't sneak up on me like that."

"And here I thought I was making enough noise to get noticed for sure", Tsurumi said, sitting down on the bench standing next to Edogai's wheelchair.

"I didn't hear any noise", Edogai said, surprised himself his voice already was carrying the same pouting tone than when talking with Nikaidou earlier. It hadn't been intentional. But these days Edogai sometimes found it hard to be understanding, as if together with his leg a part of his patience had been cut away from him. Yes, lately Edogai had become more and more impatient. The realization made him blush.

Tsurumi gave him an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, I'll be sure to make more noise next time", he said, combing his fingers through a strand of Edogai's hair. Though only shortly so. There were limitations when you were out in the open. Out of a sudden Edogai had to remember the first time they had danced with each other. That moment hadn't felt like any restrictions and limitations had been attached to it at all. If you managed to walk with a prosthetic leg you probably could use it to dance again too, couldn't you? At least a bit.

Edogai felt another sigh build up inside of him. Trying to ignore his increasing longing he changed the subject. "It wasn't even supposed to be a complaint. I'm just surprised to already see you again; you just left."

The appeasing look on Tsurumi's face vanished. Instead a content gleam showed up behind his eyes that looked strangely mysterious. "That's because I immediately found what I had been searching for and could leave right away."

Hearing those words Edogai was beginning to feel puzzled. When he had left Tsurumi had just told him he needed to take care of an urgent matter but hadn't specified any details. "What have you been doing anyway?", Edogai asked.

"I went looking for your cat. I brought him back with me."

Edogai needed a moment to let the words to sink in. His cat?! Kabuto had been missing since the day that terrible person had shot Maeyama and had chased Tsukishima and Edogai into the mine. With all the mess and human loss that had occurred after who had time and effort to spare to think about a pet cat? It had appeared the poor thing had become another victim of those occurrences, driven away by the commotion or maybe even worse. Edogai hadn't expected to find his cat again. But now Tsurumi had found him? No, more, had went away in the first place to look for him? "You found my cat?", Edogai asked, unable to keep the disbelieve out of his voice.

Giving Edogai a good look Tsurumi's expression got serious. "The poor thing was already lingering around in the yard when I arrived, as if he'd been waiting for me. As for now I've taken him in with me."

"How is he doing?"

"Hiding behind furniture most of the time. Oh, but I managed to lure him out by offering him fish to eat."

"Kabuto refuses to eat when he's distressed. So if he's already eating that means he's going to be alright", Edogai said, unable to keep his voice from breaking while saying the last word. He tried blinking away the tears insisting to show up in his eyes but only managed to make his eyesight blurry by doing so. He didn't even know why he was crying right now, he hadn't cried since the night he had been brought to Otaru (he was beginning to miss Zend so much) and that didn't count. Lately he had no idea what he was supposed to feel at any given time anyway. Most of all he was just happy that despite everything he had been allowed to see Tsurumi again, happy he was still alive in the first place.

That didn't erase that at the same time he felt absolutely devastated they had needed to remove his leg though. And the pain, his legs still hurt terribly even with the morphine he was given, it was never quite enough to erase the pain completely. He knew that Nikaidou was suffering under the same problem. A few times he had suggested to Edogai to simply steal more morphine for them but Edogai had always managed to let him see reason again and prevent him from doing it. But that didn't mean he couldn't understand the impulse. His legs hurt, the broken one and the stump of the lost one and he couldn't imagine things felt much different for Nikaidou.

But now Tsurumi had found Edogai's cat. That was good. Edogai raised his hand to his face, wiping the tears away. It wasn't really helping, he could prevent himself from sobbing but his eyesight was still so blurry. In the corner of his eye he could see something next to him move and then Tsurumi had already laid his arm around Edogai's shoulders. The gesture felt gentle and careful and Edogai leaned into the touch, feeling his suppressed longing from earlier return. Well, at least in this corner of the garden they were alone.

Edogai once again tried wiping his tears away, this time finally getting a clear sight again. He looked at Tsurumi who did a very bad job in hiding the concern he was feeling. It was always concern, never pity. Since the first day they had met. Concern was alright. Unlike as with pity you could make something constructive out of it. Edogai still felt as if he needed to say something. Getting surprised by his own tears always managed to do that. "Thank you for looking after my cat."

Tsurumi's eyes widened and then his expression went completely blank. That didn't do anything to hide the blush creeping over his face though. "Not at all. Kabuto is pleasant to have around." He gave Edogai one last hug before slowly and reluctantly letting go. There was a certain amount of acceptable comfort-hug time you couldn't overstay when in public. It definitely was the sensible thing to do. Edogai hated having to be sensible.

Despite feeling upset for the last few moments Edogai felt his stomach tingle. He lowered his voice, smiling at Tsurumi. "I would give you a thank you kiss but, you know."

Tsurumi smiled back, expression suffering. "But I know." He apparently wanted to say more but then there was already brain fluid trickling down his face, freezing him into place. Only his hand moved, quick and with movements of routine, already having a handkerchief ready to clean up his face.

Edogai tried to forbid himself to think about it but there were times he was beginning to feel fathomlessly afraid Tsurumi's head injury would become worse someday. From what Tsurumi had told him it was unlikely at this point in time the injury still had enough power to kill him. But maybe, just maybe it would eventually decide to mess with his mind. Edogai asked himself if in such a case Tsurumi might become the way Edogai had been when at his most terrible or maybe even much worse. (There were days Edogai was afraid the voices that were finally leaving him alone would eventually return to his mind but he didn't admit that towards anyone, not even towards himself.) Or maybe nothing at all would happen with that head wound, who could say.

Edogai turned his head, looking towards the fountain standing in the middle of the small garden. Tsukishima and Nikaidou were still there, practicing to let Nikaidou walk with his new leg. Their short squabble from before was long over, both wearing a look of concentration on their faces, quietly talking with each other.

The sun was so bright today, it was almost becoming unbearable. And that though they were sitting in the shadow right now. Edogai looked up at the cloudless sky. Right over him it was brightly blue, towards the horizon the blue was becoming so dark it almost started looking violet. The colour looked strangely suffocating, as if it was trying to trap him.

Being finished with cleaning up his face Tsurumi adjusted his forehead protector and leaned towards Edogai, starting to talk in a quiet voice: "What's up there? I can't even see a cloud."

"There's nothing. I was just thinking that the night sky looks so much calmer than the sky during the day."

"Calmer?"

Edogai shrugged his shoulders. "Or maybe I'm just more used to it. Might be it."

Used to it had to be the right expression. For all the time Edogai had spent wandering around at night he hadn't even an idea how the stars in the night sky were supposed to look like around this time of the year. For this he had been too busy with gathering together and hiding his raw material. Even with a prosthetic leg there probably wouldn't be another chance to continue doing this. Maybe it was for the best. Edogai still couldn't believe he hadn't gotten caught by the wrong people during the time he had taken regular trips to the graveyard.

There probably wouldn't be another chance to meet Zend then. But then, that time had ended for good anyway, at least for the moment. Though his memories of that night were somewhat foggy Edogai still clearly remembered that Zend had told him back then that the pack would move away now that their new tunnels had been finished. Edogai was really beginning to miss Zend.

It had gone so quiet, not even the rustling of the leaves could be heard. The soft breeze from earlier had stopped, leaving room for the heat to build itself up stronger again.

Edogai huffed. "At the moment night is more preferable anyway. It has gotten so hot lately."

Tsurumi nodded in agreement. "It has. Awfully so." He had sounded almost pouty.

Seeing Tsurumi like this Edogai had to laugh. "So the heat would fall away then. And during the night you have stars to look at instead this empty blue right now. That's nice too." Yes, during the night you could see the stars. There were stars hanging in the sky during the day too but they had to remain eternally hidden, the light of the sun making it too bright to see them. (Though that didn't change the fact that those stars were still there.)

_The End_


End file.
